Friday, October 16, 2026 — three word bridges.
SOME → DAY → LIGHT → HOUSE works because someday, daylight and lighthouse are all words. You are given the two ends; you supply the middle. More than one bridge is often legal, and any legal bridge counts.Warm-up
5 letters, then 5 letters.
LIGHT · HOUSE
moonlight · lighthouse · household — other legal bridges may also count.
Main
4 letters, then 3 letters.
FALL · OUT
waterfall · fallout · outrun — other legal bridges may also count.
Challenge
3 letters, then 3 letters.
GUN · MAN
shotgun · gunman · manhunt — other legal bridges may also count.
Day 85 ran on Friday, October 16, 2026. Its three bridges were MOON to HOLD, WATER to RUN and SHOT to HUNT. Between them they build nine compound words, all listed at the bottom of this page. Below is the answer to each bridge and what makes it fit.
The answer is LIGHT then HOUSE, which gives moonlight, lighthouse and household. The first gap is 5 letters, the second is 5.
Only one pair in the KEYSTONE word bank joins MOON to HOLD, so this bridge had a single accepted answer. The narrow end is usually the one to solve first.
The answer is FALL then OUT, which gives waterfall, fallout and outrun. The first gap is 4 letters, the second is 3.
Only one pair in the KEYSTONE word bank joins WATER to RUN, so this bridge had a single accepted answer. The narrow end is usually the one to solve first.
The answer is GUN then MAN, which gives shotgun, gunman and manhunt. The first gap is 3 letters, the second is 3.
Only one pair in the KEYSTONE word bank joins SHOT to HUNT, so this bridge had a single accepted answer. The narrow end is usually the one to solve first.
LIGHT, HOUSE, FALL, OUT, GUN and MAN have a page listing every compound built on them and the other chains you can run through them.
Every one of those nine compounds turns on a hinge word doing double duty. If you want to see the whole set KEYSTONE draws from, the reference list of 141 compound word hinges gives the words that attach in front of and behind each one.